Mar 5, 2019   SOURCE: PR NewsWire

The Goodyear AERO - A Concept Tire for Autonomous, Flying Cars

GENEVA, March 5, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- The Goodyear AERO concept is a two-in-one tire designed for the autonomous, flying cars of the future. This concept would work both as a tire for driving on the road and a "propeller" for flying through the sky.

"For over 120 years Goodyear has obsessively pursued innovations and inventions, partnering with the pioneers driving change and discovery in transport," said Chris Helsel, Chief Technology Officer at Goodyear. "With mobility companies looking to the sky for the answer to the challenges of urban transport and congestion, our work on advanced tire architectures and materials led us to imagine a wheel that could serve both as a traditional tire on the road and as a propulsion system in the sky."

The AERO concept includes a number of innovative features:

    --  Multimodal Design: The AERO is a multimodal tilt-rotor concept. It would
        serve as a drive train to transfer and absorb forces to and from the
        road in a traditional orientation and an aircraft propulsion system to
        provide lift in another orientation. With capable vehicles, the AERO
        would give future commuters the freedom to move seamlessly from the road
        to the sky.

    --  Non-Pneumatic Structure: The concept's spokes would provide support to
        carry the weight of the vehicle and act as fan blades to provide lift
        when the tire is tilted. This unique airless tire uses a non-pneumatic
        structure that is flexible enough to dampen shocks when driving on the
        road, and strong enough to rotate at the high speeds necessary for the
        rotors to create vertical lift.

    --  Magnetic Propulsion: The AERO concept would use magnetic force to
        provide frictionless propulsion. This would enable the high rotating
        speeds required to drive the vehicle on the ground and, when the wheel
        is tilted, lift a vehicle into the air and propel it forward.

    --  Optical Sensing: The AERO would use light-based, fiber optic sensors to
        monitor road conditions, tire wear and the structural integrity of the
        tire itself.

    --  Artificial Intelligence: The concept would also feature an embedded A.I.
        processor that would combine information from the tire's sensors with
        data from vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure
        communication. The A.I. processor would analyze these streams of data to
        recommend a course of action - allowing a vehicle to adapt to a flying
        or driving mode - and identify and resolve potential tire-related issues
        before they happen.

While the AERO is a purely conceptual design, some of its featured technologies, such as a non-pneumatic structure and intelligent tire capabilities, are being developed by Goodyear today, while others might become the basis for new ideas and potentially new products in the future.

"Goodyear's concepts are meant to trigger a debate on the tires and transport technologies for a new mobility ecosystem," Helsel concluded.

For additional pictures, visit http://news.goodyear.eu

You can also follow us on Twitter @Goodyearpress

More news from Goodyear at GIMS 2019

    --  Autonomous Concept Vehicle Golden Sahara II with Goodyear Tires
    --  New Goodyear Eagle F1 SuperSport range

Goodyear Aero concept video
https://youtu.be/4vbZlzxpr8M

Goodyear Aero 'Geek-out video
https://youtu.be/eOU12CYrcpo

Contact:
Malachy Tuohy
Corporate Communication Manager EMEA
T: +32-2-711-51-14
M: +32-472-24-20-91
E: malachy_tuohy@goodyear.com

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SOURCE Goodyear